Katie Taylor: I don’t want to give any opponent a glimmer of hope ahead of RIO

MOST would argue she has all ready achieved it, but greatness is what motivates Olympic champion Katie Taylor.

The ground breaking female puncher is deemed by most as the greatest ever female fighter, but she isn’t content with the legendary status she has already acquired.

Taylor wants to continue to ‘dominate’ for the foreseeable future and plans cement her legacy further. Indeed she is intent on not giving anyone a ‘glimmer of hope’ ahead of the next Olympics.

Speaking to the Irish Examiner the woman deemed one of the most outstanding sports people of her generation gave a rare insight to what motivates here.

The softly spoken and likable star isn’t content to rest on her success which includes Olympic Gold, four World titles and five European golds.The Bray star plans to add to her sensational and unrivaled medal haul when she heads to Romania later this month for the ninth edition of the European Women’s Elite Championships.

“I love my sport. I just love winning competitions. I want to make history in my sport. I want to go down as one of the greatest amateur boxers, I suppose,” she told the Examiner after registering three warm up wins in a weekend recently.

“It’s all about the Olympics for me as well. I’d love to go [to Rio] and defend my Olympic title. It would be unbelievable to be able to do that and to bring home medals for my country.

“I want to be very dominant over the next couple of years. I don’t want to give anyone a glimmer of hope coming into Rio.

“Whenever my fights are very close, people come out of the ring and say ‘I nearly had you there’. You want to be dominant in every performance and I think it’s important for my own self-confidence as well to continue to win competitions and defend my titles. I want to go into the Rio Olympics as European and world champion.”

Taylor leads a five-woman team that also includes Ceire Smith, Joanna Lambe, Michaela Walsh and Clare Grace.